Murata (6981.T): Q1 in line, management says it may adjust its pricing strategy for some products

First-page research excerpt

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31 Jul 2026 09:29:34 ET │ 10 pages

Murata (6981.T)

Q1 in line, management says it may adjust its pricing strategy for some

products

CITI'S TAKE

April-June OP was ¥98.5bn, exceeding consensus, and Murata

announced upward revisions to its full-year plan, but we get the

impression that market expectations had risen to similar levels. Positives

include: 1) the continued uptrend in AI data center-related sales and 2)

price cut ranges being more restrained than initial plans. However, cost

increases due to energy prices, precious metal prices, and labor costs are

also materializing. Since Murata has not implemented cost passthroughs, the OPM in the new plan fell below our previous forecast. At the

briefing, management commented on the subject of its MLCC pricing

strategy that while it will maintain its strategy in light of long-term

relationships with existing customers, it may make adjustments to the

price increases occurring at distributors. While the stock price is at

attractive levels, we want to confirm whether the company will implement

changes in strategic direction that could lead to significant upside.

Buy

Price (31 Jul 26 15:30)

¥7,416.0

Target price

¥15,000.0

Expected share price return

102.3%

Expected dividend yield

0.9%

Expected total return

103.2%

Market Cap

¥13,500,922M

US$84,627M

Takayuki NaitoAC

Implications — The MLCC BB ratio reached 1.47, a high level even after factoring in

yen depreciation, but MLCC sales in the new plan for July-September remain at

April-June levels. We want to establish how conservative Murata is being in its new

plan via discussions with the firm and other research.